Inclusion through Participation

Inclusion and exclusion in social policies and everyday experiences(INPART)

RTD-contract number SOE2-CT97-3043 (TSER Area III)

Contents:

• Objectives
• Work Content/Methodology
• Project Management
• Deliverables, Milestones: workplan and scheduling
• Exploitation Plan
• Complementary Projects

1. Objectives

The following two assumptions underlying most social policies that are aimed at combatting exclusion and promoting inclusion, will be central to the work of this project.

Firstly, put bluntly, social policies presuppose that participation in paid work is equal to inclusion; and that non-participation in paid work equals exclusion. However, this presupposition may be questioned, for example when taking into account the heterogeneous nature of paid work in modern society and the different domains of inclusion that can be distinguished.

Secondly, social policies largely neglect the integrative opportunities of other than paid work, either because they neglect unpaid work at all or because they value unpaid work as a supplement to paid work only. However, on theoretical grounds there is no reason to presuppose that unpaid work might not at least perform some of the integrative functions usually ascribed to paid work.

Against this background, it is the aim of this research project to investigate the validity of these policy assumptions regarding the integrative potential of paid and unpaid work by confronting them with experiences of inclusion and exclusion of the people participating in these forms of work. Furthermore, because we expect that these experiences not only differ for different kinds of work but for different social groups as well, the research project will also try to identify important social determinants of experiences of inclusion and exclusion. Thus, this project may shed light on the effectiveness of current social policies, on the possibility of new inclusion policies and on the desirability of tailor-made rather than general integration strategies and policies.

The social policies under consideration in this project are policies aiming at inclusion of the unemployed by enlarging their participation opportunities. The project will evaluate the objectives of these social policies with respect to inclusion by:

• confronting these objectives with actual experiences of inclusion and exclusion;
• comparing the inclusion potential of different forms of participation for different social groups;
• cross-national comparison of integration programmes and their inclusion potentials.

Since the research project will compare experiences of inclusion and exclusion as these are related to participation in different kinds of work, the project will contribute to clarifying the issue under what conditions and for which groups unemployment (i.e. the absence of paid work) does or does not cause exclusion. Thus, our hypothesis is that unemployment is not automatically linked to exclusion (just as employment is not automatically linked to inclusion); the increased risk of exclusion caused by unemployment may (at least for some groups) be tempered by other forms of participation.

The objectives of the research project can be outlined as follows.

1. To analyze and compare views on inclusion and exclusion from two connected but at the same time distinct perspectives: firstly, views on inclusion and exclusion underlying social policies; and secondly, inclusion and exclusion as experienced by different groups of citizens.

2. To gain insight into determinants of success and failure of integration policies, taking into account

• the kind of participation/work being stimulated by these policies;
• the domains of social integration aimed at in these policies;
• the cultural orientations of the target groups of these policies.

3. To gain insight into the following logical sequences that underly most social policies:

• unemployment causes exclusion;
• paid work causes inclusion;
• unpaid work in itself cannot cause inclusion.

4. To present recommendations concerning future social policies, for example with respect to:

• the degree to and the conditions under which various forms of participation might contribute to inclusion;
• the conditions under which social policies might contribute to the empowerment of the poor and unemployed by facilitating participation strategies developed by these groups themselves;
• the degree to which tailor-made approaches to problems of exclusion (rather than universal or target-group oriented approaches) are desirable and feasible.

From these objectives the following research questions can be deduced:

1. How are the concepts of inclusion and exclusion defined in national and supranational (cq EU) social policies?
2. How is participation in various forms of work related to experiences of inclusion and exclusion? To what degree are these experiences determined by cultural orientations of the people involved?
3.  What conclusions can be drawn on the basis of the answers to the former questions for the concept of citizenship in general and for social policies aimed at inclusion in particular?

2. Work Content and Methodology

2.1 Operationalization of key concepts

2.1.a Forms of participation/work

The central issue under investigation in the research project will be views on and experiences of exclusion and inclusion in relation to participation in various forms of work. Theoretically, a large amount of forms of work and combinations of them can be distinguished. This research project will focus on the following forms of participation:

1. participation on the labour market in regular/irregular and formal/informal paid work;
2. participation in 'secondary labour market' initiatives, including (central or local) government schemes offering subsidized, additional paid jobs as well as local 'civil society' initiatives;
3. participation in unpaid activities, including a.o. voluntary work, informal care, informal unpaid work.

All these forms of participation are somehow related to inclusion policies, though the degree of government intervention may differ within and across the different forms. For example, some of the forms of participation are core objectives of social policies (especially II), others feature in experimental local policies or are primarily citizens' initiatives (III). Furthermore, within each form of participation distinguished above, various concrete forms of participation can be found. Thus, although all national casestudies that will be carried out in the context of this project fit into the general scheme above, they will be different in their concrete characteristics.

2.1.b Casestudies

The empirical casestudies will be carried out in the different nations participating in the project. In each country, casestudies will be selected in such a way that the total number of casestudies covers the different forms of participation distinguished above. For each casestudy a group of people will be selected for whom participation in these types of activities are their main form of participation. In selecting respondents for the casestudies attention will be paid to the social and cultural dimension of experiences of inclusion and exclusion. Final decisions regarding the choice and precise contents of the casestudies as well as regarding the methodology that will be used will be made when results of Work Packages 1 and 2 (see below) will be available. In general, each casestudy will occupy a cell in the following matrix:

Not all forms of participation will be the objects of empirical casestudies in all countries. However, they will be the object of policy analysis as well as the object of an analysis of existing research results; see the outline of Work Packages in section 2.2.

2.1.c Social policies

Those social policies will be selected for an analysis of underlying views on and experiences of inclusion and integration that are explicitly aimed at preventing or combatting social exclusion, respectively at stimulating integration through the forms of participation distinguished earlier (for example, these will include labour-market policies and anti-poverty policies). The analysis of these social policies will focus on EU social policies on the one hand, and on social policies of the participating countries on the other.

2.1.d Domains of in- and exclusion

In order to operationalize the domains of (experiences of) inclusion and exclusion, the following domains will be distinguished:

• economic inclusion, refering to the opportunities to participate in the wealth of a nation/community;
• social inclusion, refering to (a sense of) belonging and being able to contribute to society at large, (sub)local communities and private or emotional networks;
• cultural inclusion, refering to the ability to participate in and contribute to the cultural capital of a nation;
• political inclusion, refering to the ability to contribute to the political decision processes shaping the (dis)opportunities of one's life.

As one of the first steps of the work of the project, this distinction will be elaborated and operationalized further.

2.2 Work Packages

The work in the research project will be divided into the following Work Packages. The Work Packages 1 and 2 should be regarded as preparing the work in the Work Packages 3 and 4 by:

1. creating an overview of relevant social policies;
2. making a review of relevant social scientific research;
3. elaborating and clarifying central concepts;
4. clarifying methodological issues related to doing casestudies and making international comparisons.

Work Package 1: analysis of social policies

Objective: an analysis of social policies and the debates on inclusion and exclusion in the various countries and at EU-level, to obtain insight into views on social exclusion and inclusion on which these policies are grounded, as well as on the discursive context in which these policies are formulated and implemented. These analyses will be the basis for a cross-national comparison of social policies and views on inclusion and exclusion.

Methods: analysis of policy documents, analysis of relevant literature, and interviews with key-informants in the social policy area at a national and EU-level.

Time and duration: three months.

Resource allocation: 0,8 x 3 = 2,4 man-months for each country.

Researchers: national analyses: all countries; EU-policies: UK; comparative report: Denmark and Portugal.

Work Package 2: analyzing existing and on-going empirical research 
into experiences of inclusion and exclusion

Objective: first, an analysis of existing literature and on-going research projects in the field, focusing primarily on (evaluations of) social inclusion stimulating social policies; secondly, a clarification, elaboration and operationalization of central concepts of the casestudies.

Methods: analysis of existing empirical research/on-going research projects and, if necessary, national expert meetings. This analysis will not be limited to countries involved in the research project, but will also involve other major EU-countries (for example France, Italy, Sweden).

Time and duration: 3 months.

Resource allocation: 0,8 x 3 = 2,4 man-months per country.

Researchers: national reports: all countries; comparative report: Belgium and Spain.

Work Package 3: fieldwork - national casestudies

Objective: gaining empirical insight into experiences of inclusion and exclusion related to social policies promoting participation in various forms of work.

Methods: a combination of quantitative (survey) and qualitative (interviews, optionally longitudinal research) data-collection techniques. The main point of view will be the perspective of the participants. Given the resources available to the project, quantitative results of the research will necessarily be based on small-scale data collections.

Timing and duration: 12 months.

Resource allocation: 0,8 x 12 = 9,6 man-months per country.

Researchers: all countries.

Work Package 4: synthesis, policy evaluation and policy recommendations

Objective: to synthesize data collected in the previous WP's in order to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of integration policies and in order to make recommendations regarding social policies aimed at social inclusion. Writing of final report.

Methods: both national ('cross-forms-of-participation') and cross-national comparisons of research results.

Timing and duration: 5 months.

Resource allocation: 0,8 x 5 = 4 man-months per country.

Researchers: all countries, with an editorial role for The Netherlands.

The following timetable roughly summarizes the planning of research activities:

2.3 Some additional methodological remarks

The research project's main aim is to evaluate the assumptions with respect to inclusion and integration of social policies aimed at fighting social exclusion. Usually this is being done by comparing the situation before the social policy is being implemented with the situation after implementation. However, given the fact that the social policies under investigation in the casestudies have been implemented already, and given the time-perspective of the casestudies (1 year), this will not be possible. Instead of a longitudinal approach the research project will develop a cross-sectional approach, comparing experiences of inclusion of participants in different social policies, that is different kinds of participation. Furthermore, the use of in-depth interviews will enable the interviewees to reflect on their participation and inclusion/exclusion histories and careers retrospectively.

The comparative dimension of the research project will involve two forms of comparison. Firstly, a national comparison of experiences of in- and exclusion in relation to different forms of participation. This comparison may gain insight into the question which forms of participation may, under what conditions and for what groups, contribute to inclusion. Secondly, a cross-national comparison of experiences of in- and exclusion, both in relation to each form of participation separately as across all forms of participation. This comparison may reveal which parameters of the welfare state/welfare market/welfare society mix influence the inclusionary potential of various forms of participation.

The partners of the project realize that an international comparison of the integrative effects of social policies is difficult, given the differences between social policies and the contexts within which these policies are implemented. Therefore, the issue of comparability will receive special attention during the preparation of casestudies through Work Packages 1 and 2. In this context, the partners have already agreed that a certain degree of standardization of both research methods and interview/survey questions is necessary.

2.4 Policy recommendations

One of the main objectives of the research project is to generate policy recommendations, as part of the final report. Using a comparative approach we hope to be able to present recommendations for national and EU social policies aiming at inclusion take into account national similarities as well as differences. Against the background of the subsidiarity principle of EU policies, this will enable a multi-layered set of recommendations, distinguishing general and specific policy measures both at the EU and national levels.

3. Project Management

3.1 Overall project coordination

The overall project coordination will be carried out by The Netherlands.

3.2 Schedule of meetings

During the project, eight meetings will be organized which will be used to discuss the progress of the project, to take decisions on further proceedings and to discuss drafts of reports. Although this may change given the progress of the project, at this moment these meetings are planned according to the following schedule:

1. Month 3
2. Month 6
3. Month 9
4. Month 12
5. Month 15
6. Month 19
7. Month 23
8. Dissemination meeting (not scheduled yet)

3.3 Methods for exchanging information

The methods for exchanging information between the partners of the project involve:

• the meetings scheduled above;
• meetings of the SEDEC-network, of which all partners of this project are participants and during which the national co-ordinators of this project will be able to meet;
• an e-mail project newsletter.

3.4 Reporting procedure

The submission of reports to the Commission will take place according to the following schedule:

• months 7, 13, 19 and 25: financial reports;
• months 7 and 19: progress reports;
• months 13 and 25: annual reports including the main scientific results of the project.

TSER regulations require that the first progress report (month 7) will include an adequate account of the state of the art of the knowledge and research activities conducted in the field. Therefore, the first progress report will include the first results of WP 2. All partners are responsible for providing the data and information necessary to write these reports in time. The editorial responsibility of the reports is in the hands of the coordinator.

4. Milestones and Deliverables

The progress and annual reports mentioned in chapter 3 will be based on the papers and reports that will summarize the results of each of the Work Packages. Given the nature of this research project, in general there will be several kinds of papers/reports:

• national interim papers describing the research findings of WP 1, WP 2 and WP 3 in each of the participating countries;
• synthesizing reports bringing together the national papers as well as comparing their results. These reports will be published after the work in WP 1, WP 2 and WP 3 respectively will be concluded;
• a final report.

Thus, the following reports will be published:

1. Integration policies: a cross-national study of views on inclusion and exclusion (summarizing the results of WP 1);
2. Experiences of inclusion and exclusion: a review of empirical studies (summarizing the results of WP 2);
3. Experiences of inclusion and exclusion in various forms of participation (summarizing the results of WP 3);
4. The 'excluded' and the 'includors': inclusion, participation and social policies (final report).

5. Exploitation Plan

Dissemination of the results of this project will take place at two levels: the national and the EU-level. Furthermore, dissemination will be directed at two audiences: the social-political audience (policy makers and administrators) and the scientific community.

National level

To inform the national social-political communities about the results of the project, national project co-ordinators will take care that the national research documents are made available to these communities. Furthermore, national co-ordinators will publish on the project in national professional journals and magazines. Finally, they will organize meetings for policy makers and administrators involved in the social policies investigated in the casestudies.

As far as the national scientific communities are concerned, participants in this project will publish research results in national scientific journals and/or will present these results at national scientific conferences.

European level

To inform the international/European community of social policy makers and administrators, the comparative reports that will be published in the course of the project will be made available to them. The final report will be published as a book by a professional publisher, if possible. Furthermore, a succinct précis summarizing the main conclusions and recommendations will be made available. This summary will also be the discussion document for the dissemination meeting that will be organized at the end of the project. During a 2 days international conference, this summary will be discussed with app. 100 national and EU delegates, who are involved in developing/administering integration policies at a national or EU level. Finally, the possibility to publish research results in European (professional) journals will be investigated.

To inform an international/European social scientific audience, the possibility of publishing the final report by a professional international publisher will be investigated. Participants in the project will take care that the research results will be published in international scientific journals as well as presented at international scientific conferences.

Summarizing, exploitation plans for this project look as follows:

6. Complementary projects

The participants of this project are members of the Social Exclusion and the Development of European Citizenship Network (SEDEC). This network succesfully applied for TSER-funding for a Thematic Network entitled 'Comparative Social Inclusion Policy and Citizenship in Europe. Towards a New European Social Model' (SCIP). The activities of this research project and the network being strongly complementary, close co-operation between both TSER-projects is envisaged, on the one hand to avoid duplication of work, and on the other to promote synergy. Co-operation will increase the opportunities for partners of both projects to discuss the progress of their joint work and to relate the empirical work in the research project to the theoretical reflections in the network activities, as well as contribute to the dissemination opportunities of the results of the work of both projects among policy administrators and scientific colleagues. The coordinators of both TSER-projects have already agreed to co-operate closely where this may contribute to the substantial progress and the dissemination of the projects' work.